NBA: The God of Basketball Begins with Precise Scoring

Chapter 74: Defensive Strategy Adjustment, Dream Chasing's Eye-Catching Offense!

It's that familiar feeling again.

Just when the Warriors were starting to fall behind, Li Xingchen stepped up at the most crucial moment, hitting two consecutive three-pointers to help the team erase the deficit!

This person seems to have been born to be a hero.

The live broadcast room erupted once again because of Li Xingchen's brilliant goal.

"Dude, is this right? Aren't you supposed to be a three-point specialist like Thompson? How come you've even mastered shooting with the ball?"

"That move where he faked out the opposing center was pretty flashy, kind of like Poole."

"They've turned the Heavenly Spirits upside down!"

"I want to know, what kind of skills does Brother Xingchen not know?"

"What's the use of all that fancy stuff? It can't carry the team. He's only scored sixteen points in so many games... I'm telling you, if he can break twenty points today, I'll eat three pounds of meat!"

"What are you doing here again, trying to freeload?"

……

Clippers coach Lue has not yet called a timeout.

After all, the score has only been tied, so we can observe the situation further.

During the Clippers' offensive possession, Green whispered a few words to Li Xingchen as they retreated on defense.

The general idea is to not give George any space, and if Morris gets an opportunity, he should find a way to help defend!

Li Xingchen nodded in agreement.

Draymond Green, the Warriors' "locker room leader," may have a lot of abstract maneuvers on and off the court, but it must be admitted that his awareness and skill level on the defensive end are truly top-notch.

As expected, the Clippers used the same scoring tactic as in the previous possession, with Leonard drawing the defense and then passing the ball to Morris, creating a half-open outside shooting opportunity for him.

Li Xingchen followed orders and stayed close to Paul George, completely ignoring Morris's open shot.

But didn't Draymond Green say he'd be the one to help with defense? Where is he?

Li Xingchen scanned the half-court and found him positioned between the weak-side corner and the basket, keeping an eye on Batum, who was crouching in the corner opposite him, while also being ready to help protect the rim at any time.

So, when he said help defense, he only meant attacking under the basket, completely leaving Morris open for outside shots?

But will this work? He's a center with outside shooting ability...

Just as he was thinking this, Morris, of course, didn't miss this great opportunity and immediately raised his hand to shoot a three-pointer.

With a loud "bang," he struck the iron directly.

Did it really not go in?

Li Xingchen was puzzled and couldn't understand how Dream Green had made such a judgment.

It's worth noting that at yesterday's team meeting, Kerr specifically showed everyone Morris's performance in the first round.

In the crucial Game 7, he made 7 of 9 three-pointers, contributing 23 points and 5 rebounds efficiently, with a plus-minus of +15, making him one of the biggest contributors to the Clippers' successful advancement.

I really need to find some time to have a good talk with Green and learn from him. Although he has many flaws, he also has strengths and advantages that are worth learning from.

At 18-18, Looney grabbed the defensive rebound, and the Warriors regained possession of the ball with the score tied, giving them a chance to take the lead.

Li Xingchen had already made two consecutive three-pointers, so this attack was naturally left to him.

The whole process was exactly the same as before. After the pick-and-roll with Rooney, Morris was switched in front of Li Xingchen.

—The Clippers couldn't change their strategy when Curry ran the pick and roll, and they stuck with it until Curry's shooting touch cooled off. Now, it's even more so when facing Li Xingchen.

It must be said that Morris's defense is quite good; at the very least, he is not one of the worst defenders on the perimeter. His judgment and ability to contest shots are quite good. His biggest weakness is his slow lateral movement, which makes him unable to keep up with the speed of smaller guards when they break through.

This is also the main reason why he was knocked over by Li Xingchen just now because he was in a hurry.

Moreover, he learns and adapts to feints very quickly. The combo that Li Xingchen used in the previous round immediately became ineffective in this round.

Unable to create space for a shot, Li Xingchen had no choice but to drive to the basket.

After all, Morris has an advantage in height and wingspan, so you can't pull up for a jump shot against him. You can only shoot if you've faked out the shot, otherwise it's too easy to get interfered with.

But that's okay, defense is always about covering one area at a time.

Morris increased his focus on his outside shooting, so he couldn't keep up with him immediately when he chose to drive to the basket.

Li Xingchen changed direction and easily passed Morris in one step!

Unfortunately, the Clippers' help defense arrived just as quickly.

Batum abandoned his opponent Draymond Green and pounced on Li Xingchen.

However, since he was coming from the side to help defend, Li Xingchen was actually quite confident that he could use a fake move to shake him off or draw a foul.

But Li Xingchen didn't do that, because he saw that Draymond Green had drawn Batum's defense away and was now in a very open position not far from the basket!

How could we miss such a great opportunity?

He immediately passed the ball to Draymond Green.

Draymond Green didn't miss the wide-open opportunity, and immediately launched a floater towards the basket after receiving the ball.

then……

then……

There was neither the sound of a goal swishing through the net nor the clanging sound of metal hitting the ball.

Draymond Green attempted a floater from just inside the free-throw line, but it resulted in an airball...

At this moment, he deserves the same praise as Curry or Li Xingchen for sinking a three-pointer from the backcourt.

Is this a person?

In fact, because his shot missed the target by an airball so unexpectedly, no one on the scene reacted in time to retrieve the readily available rebound.

Or it might not even be called a rebound anymore, since it didn't touch the backboard or the rim.

In the end, Curry appeared out of nowhere, grabbed the basketball that had fallen to the ground, and decisively put it back in for a basket.

Fortunately, the attack time had not yet arrived.

As expected, the person who understands Draymond Green best is still his old partner.

I doubt anyone other than Curry could have imagined that Draymond Green could throw such a close-to-the-basket floater and still miss it completely.

Draymond Green is a truly amazing player. He's incredibly strong on defense, but his offensive performance is just awful.

After the Warriors scored on three consecutive possessions and took the lead, Coach Lue finally couldn't sit still and called the first timeout of the day.

The score is 20-18, with the Warriors leading by two points.

Li Xingchen let out a soft breath, feeling that the pause had come at just the right time.

Today's match was so fluid that both teams' players haven't had a break for almost a second since the start, constantly running at a high intensity on the field.

Li Xingchen had been attacking with the ball for several rounds in a row, and definitely needed to stop and rest.

Fortunately, he hid it well, and Tyronn Lue didn't notice.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to use the opponent's timeout to recover your energy?

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As promised, there will be one more chapter.

I will do my best.